CHARLOTTE—Central Piedmont Community College uses a hands-on approach to teach Middle Schoolers about STEM education.
Thanks to a $15,000 grant from Time Warner cable, 450 students will participate in CPCC’s “If I Had A Hammer” program. The If I Had A Hammer program teaches at-risk students about the importance of science, technology, engineering and math.
If I Had a Hammer news report broadcasted on WMCTv in Memphis, TN.
Perry Wilson, the Fayette County High School graduate with dyslexia who created a math curriculum used nationwide, sees the world from unconventional angles.
“I couldn’t read until I was an adult,” Wilson said.
He also struggled with math. When he got a job as a carpenter, he quit “looking at mathematics as numbers and started looking at it as space.”
“Suddenly, I could do all of the mathematics it took to create something,” he said.
In 1987, Wilson launched “If I Had a Hammer,” using his own “aha!” moments to help children as young as 10 learn math by building things, including houses big enough to hold a class.